Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for the ‘Pension Funding’ Category

Editorial: Conservatives aren’t the only ones saying Democrats have a public-sector union problem

Posted in Chicago Tribune, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Look For The Union Label, OP/Ed, Overhead, Pension Funding, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, Springfield, Taxes, Unions on February 25, 2026| 1 Comment »

Mayor Brandon Johnson answers questions during a press conference on the fifth floor of City Hall on Feb. 3, 2026. (Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune)

By The Editorial Board | Chicago Tribune

For years now, conservative voices have railed against the outsize influence of public-sector unions on the running of American cities, with Chicago serving as one of the leading examples. Now, more left-of-center voices are sounding the alarm and saying the stakes for Democrats in charge of America’s largest cities couldn’t be higher.

The highest-profile recent example came Sunday when CNN’s Fareed Zakaria, who hosts a thoughtful Sunday show on issues of the day, aired a segment on blue cities. Pegged off New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s recent $126 billion budget, Zakaria made a stark pronouncement: “Blue cities are out of control. Promising more, spending more, delivering less and pushing off the fiscal problems to some future date.”

Sound like any city you know?

Zakaria isn’t a journalist who routinely trots out Heritage Foundation talking points. He’s a frequent and effective critic of Donald Trump.

He’s not alone. The New York Times on Monday published an op-ed by Nicholas Bagley, law professor at the University of Michigan, and Harvard visiting fellow Robert Gordon headlined, “Mamdani Will Need to Change How He Governs.” The two identify the generous pension benefits city workers receive as a key reason city taxpayers can’t afford their own municipal governments. “The question is whether one segment of workers should retire with greater security than others, at the expense of services the public depends on,” they wrote.

A rhetorical question. No reasonable person (other than maybe the members of these unions) could be in favor of that.

In other words, Democrats, the call now is coming from inside the house.

This page has been making these same arguments for years, so we quote from these sources (and there are others in the center-left lane we could cite) merely to say the alarm bells are ringing ever more shrilly for Democratic politicians like Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and, yes, Gov. JB Pritzker. Both continue to saddle taxpayers of the future with paying for the exorbitant promises of today.

Editorial continues here.

Read Full Post »

Village Board of Trustees meets Monday

Posted in Aunt Blabby, Building Department, Dumb and Dumber, ePacket Agendas, Ethics, Finance Committee, Financial Reports, Insurance Committee, Intergovernmental agreements (IGA), Little Duck Butt, Minutes, Pension Funding, Plan Commission, Police Pension Board, Police Reports, Politics, Property Taxes, Public Hearing, Public Safety, Real Estate, Roads & Bridges Committee, Taxes, Unions, VBHPD, Village Attorney, Village Board, Village Clerk, Village Code, Village Director of Administration, Village Engineer, Village Government, Village President, Village Treasurer, Zoning Board on February 22, 2026| 1 Comment »

The Village Board of Trustees will be conducting their regular monthly meeting tomorrow evening, February 23rd, beginning at 6:30 PM. Topics on their agenda include:

PUBLIC HEARING

PUBLIC MEETING

A copy of their agenda can be viewed and downloaded here.

Read Full Post »

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING Appropriation Ordinance of the Village of Barrington Hills

Posted in Aunt Blabby, Finance Committee, Financial Reports, Pension Funding, Property Taxes, Public Hearing, Roads & Bridges Committee, Taxes, Topics Of Interest, Transparency, Unions, Village Board, Village Government on February 18, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Public Notice is hereby given that at 6:30 PM, on Monday, February 23, 2026, a public hearing will be held by the President and Board of Trustees for the Village of Barrington Hills, Illinois (located in Cook, Kane, Lake and McHenry Counties) in the MacArthur Room at Barrington Hills Village Hall, 112 Algonquin Road, Barrington Hills, Illinois for the purpose of considering the proposed Appropriation Ordinance of the Village of Barrington Hills for the Fiscal Year Commencing January 1, 2026 and ending December 31, 2026.

A copy of the proposed Appropriation Ordinance is available in the Clerk’s office by appointment. All interested parties are invited to attend and will be given an opportunity to submit oral or written comment at that time. Emailed/mailed written comments should be directed to the Village Clerk and received by 5:00 PM, February 23, 2026.

Village Clerk
Village of Barrington Hills
112 Algonquin Road
Barrington Hills, IL 60010
clerk@vbhil.gov

Read Full Post »

Illinois state spending balloons as state economy stagnates

Posted in BOHICA, Clown Car, Commodius Maximus, Cost of Living, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Fat Bastard, Fat Man Walking, Girlie man, Illinois Policy Institute, Look For The Union Label, Organizations, Pension Funding, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Springfield, Taxes, Unions on December 31, 2025| Leave a Comment »

At least 49 tax hikes under Gov. J.B. Pritzker have driven state spending to record highs, even as Illinois’ economic growth has lagged the U.S.

By Ravi Mishra | Illinois Policy Institute

Illinois lawmakers frequently boast about economic growth and development, yet Illinois has posted one of the slowest gross domestic product growth rates in the nation while the budget has soared.

Illinois’ budget doesn’t reflect economic reality

Illinois’ budget has grown at an alarming rate during Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s tenure. While government spending is a component of GDP, rapid increases in public spending can crowd out private economic activity. Higher taxes used to finance this public spending can hurt consumption and private investment, a dynamic that seems to be playing out in Illinois.

Since 2018, Illinois’ economy has grown just 7.4% – among the slowest of any state. In that same time, the state budget has grown over 36%, nearly five times faster than the economy. The U.S. economy has grown 18%, 2.5 times faster than Illinois’.

If not the economy, what has driven the state’s budget surge?

Pritzker’s administration has enacted at least 49 tax hikes since 2019. Some of the most egregious examples include:

  • Doubling state gas taxes and tying annual increases to inflation thereafter, creating a $3.3 billion surplus in the state’s road fund.
  • Halting the repeal of the franchise tax, which had been agreed to in 2019.
  • Capping the retailers’ discounts – the portion of sales taxes retailers were allowed to keep as reimbursement for collecting the taxes – effectively raising sales taxes on brick-and-mortar businesses.

Not only have these hikes hit taxpayers and employers but have also weighed down Illinois’ economic performance. Illinois already has had among the highest corporate tax rates in the country, but recent changes have only made the system more complex and burdensome. The tax environment has led to the state losing businesses, and combined with high overall burden, has contributed to years of population decline.

Read more here.

Read Full Post »

Illinois TOPS NATION for public sector union political spending

Posted in 220, 300, Barrington Area Library, Barrington Education Association, Board of Education, BOHICA, Cook, County, Deception, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Elections, Fools and their money, Illinois Federation of Teachers, League of Women Voters, Look For The Union Label, Overhead, Pension Funding, Politics, Preckwinkle's Rules of Order, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, Road construction, School Districts, Springfield, Taxes, The Center Square, What the Ficke (Bradford)? on December 17, 2025| Leave a Comment »

Scott Stantis / For the Chicago Tribune

By Glenn Minnis | The Center Square contributor

Commonwealth Foundation Labor and Policy Senior Director David Osborne says Chicago’s growing reputation as the place where public sector unions flex plenty of political muscle is more than well deserved.

Osborne points to a new Commonwealth Foundation report highlighting how public sector unions across Illinois spent nearly $30 million on state races over the 2023-24 election cycle, or far more than what union officials in any other state dedicated to such causes.

At $5.5 million, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson tops the State Government Union Pac Money List of those most benefiting from government employment unions support. In addition to Johnson, at least six other state lawmakers land on the list’s Top 20, lead by House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch, D-Hillside, at No. 2 and Illinois Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, at No. 4.

“In the state of Illinois, political spending is bigger than in any other state,” Osborne told The Center Square. “Unions seem very focused on who gets elected to be the mayor of Chicago and governor of the state. What you’ve got really is a downward spiral in Illinois where the kinds of unions that have gotten so powerful have really done it at the expense of taxpayers and then they’re pouring more money into getting the right kind of people elected for them.”

With researchers adding that almost 96% of all donations for Illinois-level candidates went to Democrats, Osborne said it’s past time someone address the imbalance.

“Public sector unions, they’re not often talked about as the cause of problems,” he said. “We often look to high taxes, bigger government, economic policies, but really what’s driving states and cities to enact policies that are harmful to individuals, that raise taxes, that grow the size of government beyond its purpose are public sector unions.

Read more here.

Read Full Post »

Chicago has lost its mind – The Washington Post

Posted in Clown Car, Cook, Cost of Living, County, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Dumb and Dumber, Dumb Bunny, OP/Ed, Pension Funding, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Taxes, Uncategorized, Unions, Washington Post on December 15, 2025| Leave a Comment »

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (D) at an October news conference. | Joshua Lott/The Washington Post

The city’s fiscal situation is dire, and Mayor Brandon Johnson is determined to make things worse.

Chicago has long-term structural problems with its finances, thanks in large part to wildly underfunded pensions. The country’s third-largest city has a history of using short-term gimmicks to paper over its problems, such as a notorious 2008 deal that sold off 75 years of future parking meter revenue for $1.15 billion, which was quickly spent. That deal is still hurting finances today, which should have taught local politicians that there is no substitute for serious fiscal reform. Alas, apparently not.

The city’s net operating budget increased almost 40 percent between 2019 and 2025, “subsidized in large part by temporary federal pandemic funding that kept the City financially afloat,” according to Grant McClintock of the Civic Federation. “The pandemic is over, but many of the programs and personnel positions established during that time remain, and without the benefit of the federal funding that previously supported them.”

Mayor Brandon Johnson (D) proposes to offset a $1.15 billion shortfall by taxing the businesses that anchor Chicago’s economy, borrowing and more gimmicks.

The mayor proposes to increase the tax on the lease of “personal property” like computers, vehicles and software from 11 percent to 14 percent, and to bring back the city’s “head tax,” which would result in large employers paying $33 per worker, per month.

By making it more expensive to do business or hire workers in the city, these measures threaten Chicago’s future economic growth and tax collections. These moves are especially reckless given that the Chicago Fed’s 12-month hiring outlook is the weakest it’s been since the pandemic. Gov. JB Pritzker (D) says the head tax would penalize employment.

Read more here.

Read Full Post »

Village Board of Trustees meet Monday

Posted in Aunt Blabby, BACOG, Barbarian Migrants in Busses at the Gate, Better Government Association, Board of Health, Building Department, Dumb and Dumber, ePacket Agendas, Equestrian Commission, Ethics, Finance Committee, Financial Reports, FOIA, Horizon Farm, Horse Boarding, Insurance Committee, Intergovernmental agreements (IGA), Legal Expenses, Minutes, OMA, One Barrington Hills, Pension Funding, Plan Commission, Police Pension Board, Politics, Property Taxes, Public Safety, Real Estate, Riding Club Commission, Riding Club of Barrington Hills, Road construction, Roads & Bridges Committee, Taxes, TMI, Traffic, Transparency, Unions, VBHPD, Village Attorney, Village Board, Village Clerk, Village Code, Village Director of Administration, Village Engineer, Village Government, Village Treasurer, Zoning Board on December 14, 2025| Leave a Comment »

The Village Board of Trustees will be conducting their regular monthly meeting tomorrow evening beginning at 6:30 PM. A copy of their agenda can be viewed and downloaded here.

 

Read Full Post »

Barrington Countryside Fire Protection District Board meets Monday

Posted in Agendas, BCFPD, Jewel-Osco, Pension Funding, Politics, Property Taxes, Real Estate, Taxes, Unions on December 14, 2025| Leave a Comment »

The Barrington Countryside Fire Protection District (BCFPD) Board of Trustees meets tomorrow at 6:30 PM at 22222 N. Pepper Road in Lake Barrington. Topics on their agenda include:

  • 2025 Tax Levy Ordinance
  • Consent Agenda
  • Public Comment Policy

A copy of their agenda can be viewed here.

Read Full Post »

$1B, unneeded tax hike coming to a tollway near you?

Posted in BOHICA, IDOT, Illinois Policy Institute, Illinois Tollway, Look For The Union Label, Overhead, Pension Funding, Politics, Springfield, Taxes on December 13, 2025| Leave a Comment »

Chicago-area drivers could end up paying $1 billion more in tolls each year as part of a deal state lawmakers admitted was made to get labor union support.

By Patrick Andriesen and Ravi Mishra | Illinois Policy Institute

Illinois drivers face up to $1 billion more in tollway fees per year – money the tollways do not need – as part of a deal Springfield leaders admitted they made to get labor unions to back a Chicago-area mass transit bailout.

The Illinois Tollway board could vote as soon as Dec. 18. It would take an extra $329 per year from the typical driver.

Analysts estimated the 45-cent spike will drive the average passenger toll to $1.24, leading to $329 yearly increase for the typical commuter starting in 2027. Commercial truckers could also find themselves paying $1.73 more, or $1,264 a year.

Starting in 2029, tollway fees will automatically rise with inflation with a 4% cap per year applied every two years, regardless of the actual tollway needs. The automatic hikes make it hard for voters to hold lawmakers responsible for the hikes and will swell the tollway coffers.

That kind of automatic hike was applied to the state’s gas tax, leading to a $3.3 billion surplus and record-high taxes thanks to Gov. J.B. Pritzker. Illinois’ gas tax were 19 cents before he doubled them and added the inflationary hikes, putting the tax at 48.3 cents per gallon currently.

The Illinois Tollway Authority was initially sold to voters as a temporary way to fund new highways: “Toll free in ’73.” That was intended to be 1973, but with the automatic hikes will likely still be going in 2073.

The tollway hikes were not needed but rather a gift to reward labor unions for supporting the Regional Transportation Authority bailout of Chicago area mass transit. Illinois House Speaker Chris Welch said the toll hike was the price Illinoisans had to pay for labor union support.

“It was important to them, if they were going to agree to give up almost $1 billion dollars a year from the road fund, that they can point to something that will help keep working people working and keep roads getting repaired,” Welch told the Chicago Sun-Times.

Read more here.

Read Full Post »

Illinois lawmakers push retirement tax to keep spending more

Posted in Aunt Blabby, Barrington Education Association, BOHICA, Deception, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Illinois Federation of Teachers, Illinois Policy Institute, Pension Funding, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, School Districts, Springfield, Taxes, Topics Of Interest, Unions, What the Ficke (Bradford)? on December 4, 2025| Leave a Comment »

As state lawmakers look to plug budget holes by removing limits on state income tax rates, Illinois’ spending is set to continue breaking records.

By Ravi Mishra | Illinois Policy Institute

The state budget has grown by 35% since 2020, but Illinois lawmakers want more and hope to get it by amending the Illinois Constitution so they can potentially tax retirees and target income groups of their choosing.

The proposed amendment would end Illinois’ longstanding flat income tax. Supporters claim it would relieve property tax pressures and boost school funding. But voters statewide rejected progressive tax schemes because they promised to hit retirees, family farms and small businesses hard.

The flat tax makes it painful for state lawmakers to raise taxes, because when they do all taxpayers suffer and hold them responsible at the next election. Killing the flat tax gives lawmakers the power to divide and conquer taxpayers.

Illinois has record spending

The problem is not income but rather spending: Illinois’ budget has grown at an alarming rate. An influx of federal pandemic funds marked for temporary relief allowed lawmakers to add billions into the general funds baseline spending.

Since 2020, Illinois’ annual general funds spending has increased by over $15 billion and is projected to grow another $7 billion by 2029. That would mark a 55% spending increase in just 10 years.

With the state projecting nearly $11 billion in budget deficits through 2029, this level of unchecked spending is unsustainable.  That is, unless state lawmakers can force more taxation on Illinoisans.

Read more here.

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »